A Winner is You! Entry: Lancer
by Aelsthla-Mental
Summary: Lancer; a hero turned spirit turned hero, has joined a tournament. But since it is hosted by a demon, is there more to this tournament then meets the eye?
1. Lancer

**_This is for the "A Winner is You!" competition,_**

**_http://en. is a site to tell you about Lancer, if you don't know who he is._**

_**Disclaimer: i do not own the tournament, Lancer, or a section of this story, except in a certain way, shape, and form.**_

* * *

Lancer (also known as "Cu Culainn") was currently smooth talking a young woman with brown hair and green eyes; they were at a candlelit dinner at a reasonably priced restaurant.

He told a joke and the woman laughed.

It wasn't just that Lancer was good at talking to woman, it was an ability he had, a 'power'.

'So, darling, I heard that you're moving out to Italy.'

She giggled. 'Yes, but I could change it. I could stay here with you.'

Lancer laughed. 'I couldn't ask you to do that.' Then his face got close to hers 'How about a goodbye present?'

The woman smiled and bent over to him, lips parted.

Lancer was about to do the same, but stopped.

'_This is just too easy' _he thought.

Lancer got up suddenly 'I have to go, urgent business.' He announced.

He gave the woman a peck on the cheek 'Sorry, I hope you have a pleasant time in Italy.'

The woman gave a slight hurt face. 'Ok, hope I see you again.'

Lancer gave a cocky smirk 'Don't worry, I'm sure we will.' With that, he ran off into the streets.

After he was a far enough distance, he walked towards the forest where he lived, as he had not bought a house, he had a job, but it didn't pay too well, and he had always preferred to live in the wild.

'_It's just too easy'_ he thought. _'My 'power', strange that i have it though, considering that was the Lancer before me that had it... right? It just gets control of Woman, and they are simply too easy to control, and I'm too darn nice for my own good. What I need is a good fighter, like Saber.'_

He chuckled _'not exactly my type, but at least she wouldn't be controlled, course, we were enemies.'_

Lancer stopped at the edge of the forest. _'Come to think of it, I'm getting a bit out of practice, there hasn't been a war for the Grail for a while, as it's destroyed, and there will probably never be a war again.'_ He seemed to think hard for a minute. '_I should find some sort of tournament, a battle, but it can't be just anyone, they have to be dangerous, deadly, especially the ladies.'_

Lancer smirked, and then lost his grin. _'But where could I find a tournament like that…'_

With that, he switched on his radio pen, the only bit of electronics he had, and listened in.

As fate would have it, he heard this.

_Are you a fighter who wants to prove their skill? Show their superiority? Want a wish and big cash? Then enter the "A Winner is You!" tournament, where only the strong can belong Humans, Spirits, Demons etc. come one, come all!_

Then it said, in a softer voice. _The name "A Winner is You!" is subject to possible change, we are not responsible for any injuries you may get from this tournament, if you die through accident, you cannot sue. Come to 12 Nonexistent Road, Utopia._

Lancer gave a smirk and took off the radio pen. 'Well now, that sounds like the kind of tournament I've been looking for.'

With that, he zoomed to his destination.

* * *

Lancer looked around the place, it was impressive, he had to admit. 

They were standing near the middle of a huge, circular room. The room was about one hundred feet in diameter, with ten-foot-wide balconies on the rim. The balconies formed a giant spiral going up to the massive and awe-inspiring domed ceiling, with multiple large gates leading to the eight wings of the mall on each story. A half-dozen transparent elevators lined the inside of the balconies, providing a quicker method of travel for the rushed or lazy. Beautiful fountains, comfortable benches, and carefully chosen foliage decorated the floor of the room, along with an undecorated central stage, which the contestants clustered along one or two edges of. Some sat on the edge of the stage, talking down to the others and enjoying the perceived height difference granted by a simple four-foot ledge._**(A/N1)**_

Lancer looked around at the contestants; there were humans, aliens, demons, and an assortment of strange creatures, all looking ready for a fight.

'My kinda people' he said, with a big grin on his face.

There was a hushed silence. Obviously the owner of this contest was coming.

After being amused that the host was made of chocolate. Lancer's eyes scanned the crowd, but he heard the gist of the tournament, he would be fighting people, there would be no killing, and try not to damage the mall too much.

Lancer leaned on one of the walls, his spear appeared in his hand, and he twirled it experimentally. '_Bring it on'_ he thought.

* * *

_**(A/N1) I do not own that paragraph, if you look at the story "A Winner is You!" you will see the exact same paragraph., I am merely using it to say what the place looks like, perhaps its pointless, if avatar137 does not like it, i will eliminate it immediately.**_

_**Well, hope its good.**_

_**I have one more to enter, Deadpool!**_

_**GO DEADPOOL!... hem hem. anyway, read on.**_


	2. Broken Lance, Lancer vs Whist

_**Here it is, Lancer's round one!**_

_**I had never heard of Broken Sky since i was told i was facing someone from it, so sorry if Whist is a bit OOC.**_

_**Anyway, read on and enjoy!**_

* * *

**Lancer vs Whist**

'Let the tournament begin!' With that, Death by Chocolate begun announcing the pairings.

Then Lancer heard 'Lancer vs. Whist. This should be a bloody fight, can't wait.'

With that, Lancer found his opposition. He was tall, leanbodied man probably around 19 or 20, he was covered in complex skindye patterns (like tancolored tattoos) and his hair is a mess of several different colors. He was shirtless, and has a metal gauntlet/glove on the arm.

Probably the strangest thing about him though was the fact that he was accompanied by a big and grey dog.

Lancer eyed the dog with disbelief. 'You brought your pet to a fight?' He exclaimed.

Whist laughed. 'What, scared that he can beat you on his own?'

Lancer's temper flared. 'That's possible, he looks tougher then you.

This time it was Whist's turn to be angry.

Lancer Got into a fighting position. 'Bring it.' He chuckled.

Whist Laughed. 'This place is a bit boring to fight in, let's go to the Ferris wheel; it gives the fight a bit of a childish theme, kinda like you.'

Lancer gave a smile that showed how close he was to losing his cool 'Fine with me.' He said, and gave a sort of chuckle mixed with a growl.

The two contestants stood at opposite ends of the Ferris wheel. The dog was at Whist's feet, growling at Lancer.

'Ready' Lancer said.

'Oh, ladies first' Whist said with a chuckle.

Lancer roared and charged at his opponent with incredible speed. However, just as his lance was about to pierce Whist, both Whist and his dog vanished.

Lancer stopped, momentarily out of his bloodlust state, instead confused.

'I was expecting more of a challenge' said Whist from behind him.

Lancer was kicked from behind by Whist, knocking Lancer flying near the Ferris wheel; Whist then grabbed some razor sharp discs from his gauntlet and threw them at Lancer.

However, just like Whist, Lancer vanished.

Whist eyed the surrounding area. Then his dog barked and he immediately leapt aside as Lancer's lance struck where he was.

'Stupid dog' Lancer muttered.

Whist's eyes burned. 'Don't ever insult Blink' he said coldly.

With that, Whist vanished along with Blink.

Lancer looked around. Suddenly, razor sharp discs started flying towards him. Lancer blocked them with his Lance. But one hit and hit his shoulder; luckily, the armour absorbed most of the damage.

Lancer looked up and saw that Whist was on top of one of the gondolas, Whist started firing more discs.

Lancer dodged and leapt at an impossible height, landed on the gondola that Whist was on, and shouted 'Gáe Bolg!'

Whist leapt onto the next gondola, avoiding the attack.

'Nice try… huh?' Whist noticed that there was a spear wound on his arm, blood dripped on the gondola, and onto him. Blink whimpered and started licking the wound. 'But I dodged it!'

'Few can dodge the Gáe Bolg, obviously your not one of them.' Lancer smirked. 'Although, you must have some degree of luck, I was aiming for your heart.'

Whist gritted his teeth. 'That's it, you're going down!' With that, Whist grabbed two razor sharp discs, and leapt to the gondola with Lancer, and struck using the discs as melee weapons.

The two might have been a close match, but the discs simply weren't the best melee weapon of choice. Lancer blocked the side strike, the uppercut, and when Whist leapt up To jump over him Lancer lifted up his spear and left another cut too close to his lung for comfort.

Whist grimaced. 'Ok, plan B'

The dog appeared next to Whist and they vanished.

Lancer narrowed his eyes, suddenly; razor sharp discs came from below and cut the gondola off, with Lancer still inside it!

Whist watched and grinned as the gondola plummeted to the ground.

'Yeah, I know.' He said to the dog. 'That guy probably teleported out.'

With that, Lancer came from behind and shouted 'Gáe Bolg!'

Whist knew that it was useless to try and dodge it, but he leapt away anyway.

Whist looked at himself and noticed that there were no new wounds on him. 'Guess lady luck is smiling on me.'

'I think your dog would think otherwise.' Lancer made a psychotic grin.

Whist turned around and saw that his dog had a wound. Whist glared at Lancer and shouted 'MURDERER!'

'Don't worry; I made sure the wound wouldn't kill him. Merely incapacitate him.' Sure enough, Whist could still sense the dog's mind. Lancer continued. Now it's just you, and me.' Lancer laughed.

Whist went deathly quiet. 'YOU WILL PAY!' He shouted suddenly. With that, He tossed disc after disc in a rapid flurry that even lancer couldn't seem to keep up with.

One hit his right leg; another disc hit his left arm. The armour absorbed most of the Impact, but rage made the discs all the faster and deadlier.

Lancer leapt into the damaged gondola, using it as a shield.

'Come out, you coward, its time for me to finish you.' Whist was whispering, but he seemed to mean every word.

Whist walked slowly to the damaged gondola, throwing discs that went right through, and looked inside, it was empty.

'Gáe Bolg' Lacer shouted from one of the gondolas still airborne.

Whist turned around and saw the spear heading towards him at an incredible speed. The spear missed by a fair margin, but then it EXPLODED.

The shock waves knocked Whist out cold.

Lancer leapt and came to the ground. 'I guess I'm the winner.' He grinned. 'A good fight, if everyone in the tournament is like him, it may be fun after all.'

DbC appeared on top of the damaged gondola in a cloak of dark chocolate.

'Lancer is the winner!' DbC announced.

Lancer looked at the unmoving forms of Blink and Whist. 'They were good, but can you pair me up with a lady next time?'

DbC shrugged. 'Possibly...'

DbC vanished, leaving Lancer alone to think.

'_This tournament will test my skill in every way imaginable.' _he thought.

Lancer grinned psychotically 'BRING IT ON' he roared to no-one in particular.

* * *

_**I was a bit cruel to Blink, poor dog.**_

_**But still, hope you enjoyed it!**_

_**Makes you wonder what the next round will bring...**_


	3. WSMS, Lancer vs Wolfwood

_**Unfortunately (For me anyway), I lost the last battle, go read angelLucifel's version of the story to find out what REALLY happened. My last chapter was just a lovely dream :).**_

_**Anyway, i was shocked to find out that Lancer was facing Wolfwood, as Wolfwood is one of my top ten fave characters, But here it is. Can't pull any punches.**_

_**I highly recommend reading jjp55's version when it comes out.**_

_**The good news about this is, i don't care who wins really, as both characters are some of my fave. So, with complete honestly, GO JJP55!**_

_**Hem Hem. but anyway, to the story...**_

_**This story is about a fight between a man of religion, and a man whose present existence was only made possible by the Holy Grail, an interesting thing to point out.**_

_**Their fighting styles are very different, as well as their backgrounds. A man who lived in the dark ages, vs a man who lived in a western-style planet.**_

_**So, it was only fair to call this story...**_

* * *

_**Western Showdown, Medieval Style!**_

_Wolfwood vs Lancer_

Grimacing, Lancer limped somewhat rapidly back into the building. Getting hit by a roller coaster was definitely not his idea of "Fun". Especially since the ride went for at least twenty minutes…

'Damn it, that's the last time I fight a guy with a dog.' He muttered. 'Its times like this I wish I could become a spirit.'

After the rather… irritating fight, Lancer was in surprisingly good shape. He had a cut here, a bruise there. But his armour seemed fine, obviously it had done it's job.

Grimacing, he came to the crowd, waiting to see who was next.

The screen turned around showing all the match-ups. Lancer saw him and took a look at his opponent. He wore black, and had a giant metal cross on his back.

'Guess he's religious, probably would love to get his hands on the grail.' He laughed bitterly, knowing what the grail brought, Destruction, death, pain...'

'Hey, Mr, I don't want to shoot a guy in the back!'

Lancer looked up at the third story balcony to see Wolfwood aiming a gun in the shape of a cross at him, Wolfwood was right outside a weapon shop; he had probably taken a few weapons, perhaps even a few upgrades. Wolfwood was grinning, obviously knowing he had the high ground, and the advantage.

Lancer grinned too, seemingly oblivious to the tactical advantage Wolfwood had over him. 'Bout time you showed up.' With that, lancer seemingly ignored his injuries and leapt the three stories separating them, avoiding a few wild, but still well-aimed shots from a bewildered Wolfwood (who was wondering how the heck he could jump so high), and landed on the side where Wolfwood was and sideswiped Wolfwood with his spear, almost like hitting a gong.

The crowd, a fair distance away, cheered, not caring who won, just enjoying the fight.

Wolfwood, due more to luck then skill, twisted around and blocked the spear with the cross, but the force of the impact sent him flying off the top floor, heading straight for the bottom.

Showing incredible reflexes in mid-air Wolfwood aimed and fired a missile at Lancer.

'Ach, Nasty.' Lancer leapt above the missile, which destroyed a section of the upper floor. Then he hit the ground right next to Wolfwood.

'_I should consider using some of those new weaponry, they look like fun.'_ Lancer grinned.

Wolfwood grabbed out a small gun from his cross and fired. Lancer ducked and sideswiped with his spear, Wolfwood jumped up, but the spear hit the Cross at a low section, making it topple over. Wolfwood must have been prepared, as he had landed crouched on the cross, his gun in Lancer's face.

Just before he pulled the trigger Lancer reversed the swipe of his Lance, sending Wolfwood on a toboggan ride with the Cross.

Wolfwood's several shots when wide, but one managed to clip Lancer on the left arm.

Wolfwood looked surprised, but his instincts allowed him to quickly re-aim his gun at Lancer…

Who vanished?

Wolfwood looked to the side to see Lancer was running fast enough to keep up with the cross, despite the trail of blood he was leaving. Lancer swiped at him.

Wolfwood rolled off the cross. He fired a shot but unfortunately just as he fired the cross hit a chunk of rubble from a destroyed pillar, probably left over from the last fight in the area. The cross took a jump, smacking Wolfwood in the face as it did, and landed at the wall. Wolfwood tasted blood in his mouth, but ignored it.

Wolfwood rolled a couple of times more before aiming at Lancer and firing.

Lancer simply tilted his head slightly to the right, the bullet whizzed by to hit the escalator, Lancer simply grinning sadistically as the bullet passed him.

'_Ok, so he is agile, I get it.' _Wolfwood thought furiously. _'I need my cross back if I can stand a chance.'_

Wolfwood grabbed a smoke grenade from his pocket and threw it at Lancer. _'I knew this would come in handy'_

Lancer, thinking it was an ordinary grenade, leapt back, knowing he couldn't really dodge an explosion from inside it.

Thick smoke seemingly EXPLODED everywhere. But Wolfwood had memorized exactly where the cross was and ran for it.

'_Time to blow this medieval reject sky high'_ Wolfwood would have chuckled, but a single sound could betray him. Grabbing the cross, he waited silently for the smoke to clear.

The smoke started clearing. Lancer had, for some reason, ended up on the opposite side of the store.

'Easy as pie.' Wolfwood grinned. _'He isn't going to dodge this one, it's a heat seeker.'_

Wolfwood fired the missile at the same time Lancer saw him and shouted 'GAE BOLK!'

Even as the rocket fired, Lancer threw his spear. By chance, or by the possible fact that the spear had gained heat, they collided in mid-air.

The resounding explosion created a shockwave that knocked Wolfwood down, and acrid smoke covered the area.

Wolfwood coughed hard before grabbing a gas mask he happened to have in his pocket and put it on.

'_That spear really has some power behind it.'_

Wolfwood looked around. The smoke was clearing and Lancer was nowhere in sight.

'_Hope I didn't kill him, I'd be kicked out of here if I did. Don't die on me Lancer. Just be unconscious.'_

Interestingly, there were no smoke detectors in the area; perhaps Death by Chocolate had anticipated things like this.

As the smoke cleared, it became more and more obvious that Lancer was nowhere in sight.

'_If he was killed, they would have told me. All I have to do is find that guy and knock him out; he doesn't seem like the kind to surrender, so it's probably my best bet. But where is he?'_ Wolfwood whipped his head around, searching for any clues._ 'Probably on the upper floor, it's where I would go to get to the upper ground. Maybe I should forget my honour and use my brand new sniper rifle…'_

Memories of Caine the Longshot, then Vash appeared in his mind.

'_I ain't stooping to that level. Damn you Vash, you gave me a conscious. I swear it's gonna get me killed someday.'_

Wolfwood narrowed his eyes and looked up; nothing visible, but still…

The blood trail had vanished too; the wound mustn't have been much.

'I better get up there, even if he is down, I'll have the advantage.' He muttered to himself.

There were three ways up; the escalator, the elevator, or the staircase.

'_Elevator leaves me trapped, Escalator leaves me needing cover. Staircase is probably the best bet.'_

Slowly, he walked towards the staircase for "emergency use only". It was in a square shape stairs with a hole in the centre, it was quite narrow and Wolfwood started having his doubts. After shooting a few rounds in there for some peep holes to see what was above and beside the walls, he considered it safe to enter.

Still, he better get through fast.

Dashing up the first flight, he ran up the second flight of stairs and…

He tripped.

The spear popped out just as he was about to run out the door, he tripped on it and fell to the floor.

Wolfwood quickly made an attempt to get up, but he was hit on the head with the butt of Lancer's spear.

Wolfwood crumpled to the floor, out cold.

Lancer stared at gave something between a grimace and a grin 'I dunno whether to laugh or be annoyed at the rather simple finish.'

Shrugging, he held his lance in a stocks position. 'Now, let's go see that weaponry store…'

Grinning, he grabbed one of the guns Wolfwood had in his holster, and surprisingly slowly, began walking towards the gun store that Wolfwood had been at. But not before looking at the few crowd members who had stayed at far enough range to be safe. One of them was being treated; he had a bullet wound, poor guy.

Suddenly, Lancer froze, noticing someone in the crowd. A flash of short, red hair, warm eyes gazing at him.

When he squinted, it vanished.

'Must be imagining things.' He growled to himself.

Continuing his slow walk towards the weaponry store, he muttered the last words to himself.

'I could have sworn that I saw Bazett just then…'

* * *

_**Well, i sure hope you enjoyed this version, as well as jjp55's**_

_**I was going to have an in-betweener chapter, but i honestly didn't have the time. I will probably next time though.**_

_**If you don't know who Bazett is, she was Lancer's master in "Fate Stay Night", however VERY early in the war she was betrayed by her 'friend' Kirei Kotomine, Kirei killed her and severed her arm to take away the command seals, as well as now owning Lancer.**_

_**While i'm at it, i'll tell you who Gilgamesh is from jjp55's story.**_

_**Gilgamesh is Kirei's other servant. He shouldn't have been there, but due to some occurrences in the last war he became flesh-and-blood, he survived by consuming the mana (and perhaps souls) of about one hundred people. But as to why he hates Lancer...**_

_**Well, it is probably due to Lancer sacrificing himself so his soon-to-be murderer escaped. Due to Lancer 'betraying' Kirei and Gilgamesh, Kirei and Gilgamesh would die soon after.**_

_**A bit of an obscure resentment, true. After all, Gilgamesh killed Lancer easily enough! But thats what i'm guessing. So unless jjp55 has a fictional reason (It is very possible, since this is , heck, what we're writing right now is fanfiction!) that is probably it.**_

_**ANYWAY, I hope you enjoyed the story. This story doesn't quite need as much R&R as my other ones, but i would certainly like some!**_

_**If someone is keeping track of this tournament, I hope you have enjoyed what you have read so far.**_

_**This Authors note has gone long enough already, so ciao!**_


	4. Spiritual Confrontation, L&V vs I&S

_**Well, i think/hope this is on time including the extension, anyway, here it is!**_

_**Like most, i had never heard of either Scorpion or Ichigo (although i have fought Scorpion in a previous round, so it was marginally easier). But after this, i may start watching Bleach :).**_

_**Sorry for any wrongs in the characters, abilities, etc. I tried**_

* * *

**Lancer & Vincent Vs. Scorpion and Ichigo**

Lancer sighed. Why was he, who had easily gotten up after a roller coaster had rammed into him at full speed, still lying in bed wounded after a simple stab wound?

Partly, it was because the wound was made by a holy blade, making it able to damage spirits far more effectively.

But the real reason?

'You don't have a temperature, and the wound, despite having punctured your heart, doesn't seem to have caused too much damage. You should be alright. Since you are partly a spirit, your organs aren't too important.' The Nurse, a rather pretty woman, said. The main reason she had been chose as a nurse in this tournament was the fact that she could think logically _and_ supernaturally, very useful really.

'Thanks lass, you've been so good to me.' Lancer grinned.

The nurse gave a giggle. He had been visited by no fewer then seven nurses at first, all of them pretty. When it was discovered that he was stable, they still came to him anyway. He would sweet-talk, they would laugh. Everybody won in the end. Yes, life was good, even if he had a large hole in his chest just a few hours ago.

His grin faltered, remembering the blade. The gleam, the sharp edges, the gold and black hilt.

'I'm sure I've seen it somewhere before…' He murmured.

He sighed. 'It's probably nothing.'

The pretty nurse from before came in. 'You have visitors.' She said, smiling.

Lancer smiled back, it was probably more adoring fangirls. 'Let 'em in.'

The nurse looked back at the door and beckoned, a couple of 'men' (at this point Lancer's smile became a little forced) entered the room.

'Your name is Lancer, correct?' The first one said, his face frowning down at Lancer. His brown eyes gazed upon him with contempt.

Lancer merely smirked and he held his arms back, using them as a pillow. 'That would be me, and you are?'

'My name is Ichigo, and my associate over here.' He waved at the second man; a hulking figure wearing a yellow and black outfit, staring coldly at Lancer 'is called Scorpion.'

'Pleased to meet cha's' Lancer said easily. 'So, you want my autograph?'

The statement was answered by Scorpion growling. 'I've had enough of this' He took a step towards Lancer.

'Stop' Ichigo said coldly. 'It is not right to strike him in a hospital bed when his team-mate hasn't arrived yet.'

'…What are you guys yappin' about?' Lancer asked.

'In case you didn't know, this match is two on two. You're supposed to be fighting alongside a man called Vincent.' Ichigo Explained, sounding like a teacher telling a failing student how to work out a problem.'

'Aahh, so we're gonna wait for my ally, kid?' Lancer said easily, getting comfortable in his bed.

Ichigo's eyes glinted at the word 'kid', the massive cleaver sword he had sheathed seemed to glint too. But Ichigo continued smoothly 'It appears that way, and I for one don't like waiting. So you better hope he finds us before I lose my patience, or Scorpion does.' Ichigo nodded to his "associate". 'He can be very impatient I've learned.'

Scorpion was scowling at Lancer, shuffling back and forth with anticipation. 'You know, you got strange blue hair.' He snapped.

'You should probably look at ya' friend there.' Lancer said with a grin, looking at Ichigo's orange hair.

Ichigo froze, and then stared at Lancer, his eyes brimming with hatred.

'I've changed my mind, Scorpion.' He said quietly. 'Let's take him on together.'

Scorpion gave a sadistic grin. 'About time'

'You guys won't fight in a hospital, will you?' Lancer said lazily, but grabbing his spear all the same.

Scorpion responded by picking up Lancer's bed; Lancer still on it, and hurling it at a wall.

While the bed seemed to hold up just fine, The Wall decided it couldn't take such force and collapsed outwards, sending the bed right through. Splinters of wood and chunks of plaster flew everywhere, pelting Lancer, who bravely took cover under the sheets.

Lancer and the Bed rammed into a bookcase, toppling it over.

'Idiot!' Ichigo snapped at Scorpion. 'You should have let me stab him, it would have caused far more damage, and we wouldn't have lost him.'

'Why defeat him that quick? We should toy with him.' Scorpion sneered.

'Ichigo shook his head. 'His ally may come at any time, besides, he may be more capable then you think.'

With that, they went through the hole in the wall, and into the place next door, which happened to be…

A book store?

The bed and toppled bookcase remained, but Lancer had vanished.

'Where could he be…' Ichigo murmured.

Both Ichigo and Scorpion took a few steps forward. Then, they remembered a bit of combat knowledge a little too late.

'No-one ever looks up' Lancer shouted as he jumped off from a bookcase and struck with his spear like a gong.

Ichigo was faster then Lancer had suspected, and avoided the attack. Scorpion however…

WHAM!

…was sent hurtling through the shop front window.

He landed outside, skidding along the lino floor. Looking up, he noticed the Dymocks sign.

'Dymocks are going to have a lot of unexplained fires.' He muttered darkly,

Just as he was about to take his mask off, he heard the cocking of a loaded gun right near his head.

'Don't move.' A voice said next to his ear.

Scorpion froze. 'I guess you're Vincent. 'He said with a chuckle.

The voice was silent.

Scorpion chuckled again. 'You have no idea what I am, do you?'

Silence.

Scorpion shrugged slowly. 'Don't say I didn't warn you…' He whipped to the side

BAM

Scorpion was shot in the head at point black range. Unfortunately, not only did Scorpion have a thick skull, he wasn't even human enough to be killed, or even incapacitated. So instead of dying, he shuddered at the impact and threw a punch at his foe, the red cloak-wearing, gun-toting Vincent Valentine.

Vincent Ducked under the punch and fired again, this time aiming at the heart.

Once again, not the best place to shoot. The bullet left a mark, but Scorpion used the opportunity to kick the ducking Vincent between the legs.

Stumbling back, Vincent fired a few wild shots, one of them flying through the window and hitting Lancer's armour.

'I'm on your side here!' Lancer yelled.

Ichigo took advantage of Lancer's distraction to flash step and slash with a downward stroke towards Lancer.

Lancer simply managed to bring his spear in front of him with two hands, blocking the blade.

'You're fast.' Ichigo muttered. Backing away he continued 'Looks like you may be a challenge, I better speed things up.' He held the blade in front of himself and shouted 'Tensa Zangetsu!'

Immediately, his blade changed from a large unwieldy cleaver to a Japanese long sword, a millisecond later they clashed.

'You ain't bad yourself, kid.' Lancer grimaced; he had barely come up to dodge that attack. Some "Most Agile" Servant he was, that True Assassin guy might have done better!

'_Seriously, is everyone in this tournament fast?'_ Ichigo thought.

Scowling, Ichigo increased the pressure of his blade on the spear.

'You do realize, as a shinigami, it's my job to take you out of here, spirit. Or cleanse you.' His eyes flashed blue. 'Or kill you, _again_.'

Lancer grinned. 'You dare to defy the grail, lad? That's why I'm here.'

'If I recall, the grail was tainted when it summoned you.' Ichigo mirrored Lancer's grin with a strained version of his own. 'I've checked up on everyone in this tournament, the Soul Society will want to know about the Grail. Now, let's carry on.'

Leaping backwards, Ichigo shouted 'Tensa Zangetsu!'

Lancer had no idea what that meant, but he could sense the intent and knew whatever it was, it was coming for him.

Ichigo slashed, yet the blade seemed to leave a black residue that…

Went for him like a bullet.

Lancer had already been prepared for it, and had put his spear up to block the blast.

Unfortunately, he didn't anticipate Ichigo using it as a diversion.

For the split second that Lancer blocked it, Ichigo flash-stepped and slashed to the left side.

The blade only just penetrated the armour, and bit into the skin.

Drip, drip.

Blood soaked the blade and dripped to the floor.

For a second, Lancer seemed to fade, and then he snapped back to reality.

'_He is somewhat resilient to my blade, this spirit is full of surprises.'_ Inwardly, Ichigo grinned. _'Perhaps even a worthy opponent, but I won't get cocky, after what happened LAST time.'_

Images of Kyuubi came to Ichigo's mind.

'That hurt…' Lancer said, staring at the steady rhythm of blood dripping down to the floor. A sadistic grin came on his face. 'Let's REALLY get the blood pumping!'

Lancer attempted to strike Ichigo with a downward stroke of his spear, Which Ichigo avoided easily. What Ichigo didn't miss was Lancer's foot striking his midsection.

'_Not only fast, but agile.'_ Ichigo thought, this man had been making him think a lot.

Since the blade wasn't far in Lancer's skin, it came out easily. Ichigo stumbled back.

Lancer brought his spear forward. 'I think it's time to end this, Gae-'

He was cut off by a Galian Beast Vincent hurling Scorpion right into him. The impact caused him to ram right into Ichigo, The spear just millimetres from impaling the Shinigami, and collapse them all into a heap.

Lancer moaned, a piece of rubble had somehow come to land spike-side up on his head, and it hurt. Lancer's moaning got cut off by Scorpion's hand around his neck. Scorpion was to his left, looking worse for wear, Vincent has obviously done some damage. Blood was all over him, and some was flowing from his arms, not enough to decrease their strength, unfortunately for Lancer.

'Your pal seems more demonic then me, but you look human enough.' He grinned.

Lancer rasped and brought his hands up to his neck, trying to break the hold.

'_Where the hell is my Spear?'_ He thought furiously to himself.

Using his right hand he began feeling around, still attempting to breath.

'It _ain't near me, guess I'll have to improvise._'

Grabbing a largish piece of the wall he had gotten acquainted with when he was hurled into it, he slammed it into Scorpion's face.

Scorpion was NOT amused, he gave a grunt of pain, but if anything, the grip had tightened.

Black spots were starting to appear in Lancer's vision.

'_Damn it!'_

Lancer felt around, and brushed a sharp blade.

'_The kid's blade! That gives me an idea'_

Lancer moved his arm back and thrust it forward, slicing a thin red line across it. Suddenly, he turned ethereal, and Scorpion's arms went right through him.

'What the HELL!' Scorpion growled, standing up somewhat uneasily. Looking at his left leg, Lancer could see a massive bite mark; a perfect match to the Galian beast's snout.

Taking advantage of the situation, Lancer leapt up, and struck at Scorpion.

Scorpion brought his hand up to block the attack, But Lancer simply passed through him harmlessly.

Now behind Scorpion, he swivelled, and struck again, with a kick to the stomach.

This time the strike DID connect; Lancer had become solid again in those few seconds, and Scorpion stumbled back, only to collapse when he put too much weight on his leg.

Lancer grinned, and then noticed a glint from the corner of his eye; His spear was in a bookshelf, having impaled the book in its way.

Lancer dashed for his spear and grabbed it.

'_That was easy; you'd think it would have been harder_.'

His thoughts were interrupted by his sixth sense, warning him that a projectile was heading towards…

He leapt to the side as a bookcase flew in the air and smashed into the wall. Looking back, he saw Ichigo, his blade in a diagonal stance.

'So, you can anticipate anything I throw at you.' He said matter-o-factly. 'I'll have to remember that.'

'Still up? I can fix that.' Lancer grinned. Thrusting his Spear forward he shouted 'GAE BOL…' He was forced to defend himself as Ichigo dashed forward and slashed with an uppercut, using it as a spring, he leapt above Ichigo and once again shouted 'GAE BOL…' The sword flashed up and catapulted his spear towards a wall.

Thrusting his spear back, thus letting it take the impact, Lancer shouted 'GAE…'

Ichigo flash-stepped forward and thrust the blade at Lancer.

Ichigo ducked and the blade penetrated the wall.

'…BOLK!' Lancer's spear thrust forward.

Ripping through the wall like rice paper, Ichigo's blade blocked the spear, but the enchanted spear didn't seem to believe in physics and rebounded off, right into Ichigo's heart.

Blood poured down. Ichigo looked at the wound with disbelief.

'Bah, toughen up kid. You'll live.' Lancer frowned. 'Hey, what's wrong with your face?'

'I was hoping I wouldn't have to do this.' Ichigo whispered weakly, a mask materializing onto his face. 'But you have left me no choice.'

Lancer frowned. The mask was a mix of red and white. But what really got his attention were the eyes. It wasn't the yellow irises, strange body features seemed to be the fashion in this tournament. What was really unnerving was that the eyes were staring with a sadistic glee, as if they were waiting to see him ripped to shreds, and would love every second of it.

Suddenly, Ichigo struck.

Lancer tried to avoid it, but the blade glanced his armour.

'_I don't think I can keep up with him anymore.'_ Lancer thought in disbelief.

Ichigo confirmed his statement by following the strike with another, this time Lancer didn't get as far as before, and the sword cut into his armour, right into his chest.

Lancer took this moment to lash out with his spear, the spear…

Past harmlessly through.

'Looks like its over.' Ichigo commented, the mask distorting his voice.

'Got that right.' Lancer punched Ichigo, his hand going through Ichigo harmlessly.

'Well, you fought well.' Ichigo sighed.

'If I were you, I'd surrender.' Lancer laughed, despite the ethereal blood pouring down.

'Care to say why?' Ichigo said cockily.

'What do you think would happen if my hand became real while it was inside your skull?' Lancer asked, grinning.

Ichigo froze; if his face were visible it would have had a look of shock.

'I'll fix it.' Ichigo snarled, attempting to yank the blade out and get some distance between them.

Unfortunately, since the blade was designed to fight spirits, it treated Lancer being ethereal the same as if he were corporal, that combined with Lancer using the other hand to hold the blade back left Ichigo struggling, he could take it out in time, but would it be enough? To make it worse, his attempt to yank it out left it not touching Lancer, meaning it was only a matter of time before Lancer would become corporal. He was stuck with two options. Surrender, or leave his blade with Lancer, where he would most likely be bested.

'Fine, I surrender!' He snapped.

Lancer immediately took his arm out, a moment later he became corporal.

'Pleasure doing business with you.' Lancer said in a heavily exaggerated diplomatic tone.

'I'm still here!'

Lancer turned around to see an immolated Scorpion.

'I don't need that Death God, I've surpassed death itself!' Scorpion roared. The flames burned harder, all the books on the floor burst into flames.

Lancer grimaced. He hadn't the energy to fight him, where was Vincent?

'Well, I guess I should be off.' Ichigo said, his mask vanishing from his face. 'Win it Scorpion.'

'Oh, I plan to.' Scorpion laughed. Taking of his mask, he revealed a flaming skull that started spewing flames at Lancer.

Mustering his strength, Lancer rolled out of the way, singeing his feet in the process.

Scorpion knew he had it under control, he took a step forward.

…and collapsed to the floor. His leg with the bite marks hadn't healed yet.

Getting up, he grimaced. 'Ok, so I won't be walking to you. But that doesn't mean I can't pummel you!'

With that, Scorpion teleported Next to Lancer, his fist ramming right into Lancer's face.

Lancer gargled out in pain as hellfire immolated him, burning him to the very core.

'Time for you to serve your time in hell for what you've done.' Scorpion grinned, bringing his fist back for another punch.

Lancer was bleeding; his soul seemed to be _leaking_. He wasn't going to last much longer.

But he wouldn't give up, He was the most enduring servant – And endure he would!

'Any last requests? I could have sure used it before I died.' He snarled.

Lancer gave a smirk. 'Can you look behind you?'

Scorpion snorted. 'You honestly think you can fool me with…'

He was interrupted by several gunshots in quick succession. His body shuddered, and he turned around and snarled at the now human Vincent standing on top of a bookcase

'You just won't die, will you?' Vincent said coolly.

'Neither will you!' Scorpion snarled.

Teleporting next to Vincent, he threw a punch, which sailed harmlessly as Vincent turned into a cloak and drifted away. Scorpion fell down from the bookcase, but his weakened legs still managed to absorb the impact and he remained standing.

'GAE BOLK!'

Scorpion took a couple of steps forward from the impact and looked down at the bloody spear protruding from his chest.

It was then that all Scorpion could see was a crimson red.

'RAAAAGGHH!' he screamed. Ripping the spear out, with Lancer still holding on, he hurled him out the door and down to the lower floor, where Lancer hit the ground on his back with a thud.

Then, Scorpion turned his face towards Vincent.

'Your next, swine!' He roared.

Vincent simply stared at Scorpion and replied coolly 'Words are cheap.'

Scorpion charged forward, his 'useless' leg somehow recovering.

Vincent got a few shots off before Scorpion rammed into him, sending them both hurtling into a bookcase, smashing it over, followed by ramming into a wall which groaned, but held firm.

Vincent made no sound, his face made no movement, but his ribs made a crackling noise, revealing there had been an effect.

Scorpion grinned, the ribs crackling had been an invitation, and he took it with clenched fists, once again he punched Vincent, this time immolating him.

'You almost make this too…' Scorpion was stopped by Vincent bringing up his gun at the 'o' sound and stuffing it in Scorpion's mouth.

'Make one movement and you die' Vincent stated coldly.

Scorpion made some muffled noises.

'You have three seconds to surrender, do so by stomping your foot once. One…'

Scorpion made no noise, just stared directly at Vincent.

'Two…'

'_He'll be fine even if he get's shot, I'm sure.'_ Vincent thought to himself. _'He is a demon anyway.'_

'Three.'

Scorpion closed his eyes, waiting for the shot.

click

The gun was out of ammo.

'Well, I'm in trouble.' He muttered.

Scorpion opened his eyes and Vincent found himself being thrown away like a rag doll, his gun torn out of his grip. He slammed into the ground.

Scorpion walked towards him, the mask unable to hide flames poking out of it, showing his fury.

Vincent got up unsteadily, staring back.

Scorpion kept going, an unstoppable force coming ever closer.

Then he heard something, words from a distance.

'_Fire in the hole!'_

Vincent remembered that remark; it was a good time to get out of the way.

Vincent turned into the cloak and floated out of the store.

Roaring, Scorpion charged and…

BOOM

The spear flew into the room and hit the ceiling, creating an explosion. A small explosion, but damaging nonetheless.

The shockwave swept Scorpion off his feet, and at last; after enduring all the pain of the battle, he finally fell to the ground. Or to be more accurate, he flew three feet before his body met the floor.

Vincent came back to the shop, all human again. He examined the damage. The whole place was a wreck, and any Author whose last name started with 'R' was not going to make any money from here. No Harry Potter for the boys and girls in this neighbourhood.

The floor groaned suspiciously, and the ceiling had masses of cracks, and a big gaping hole, revealing that the shop above was a supermarket. A few candy bars were nearly falling in, but they hung precariously by a few precious millimetres.

Ok, but what about Scorpion?

A quick check showed he was breathing, although his bones seemed to be partially _liquefied._ Not to mention the numerous wounds and the large bite mark (at this point, Vincent spat). He would be ok, Vincent supposed.

Now for his teammate, who had so kindly hurled his spear and somehow created an explosion with it.

Leaping down to the lower floor, his cape looking like a classic hero as he did. Vincent inspected Lancer.

To be blunt, he didn't look well. Gaping wounds that didn't seem to be healing, burn marks, cuts, scratches and bruises… he was an absolute mess.

But he was alive, Vincent concluded when he heard Lancer groan.

'Did I get him?' He mumbled.

'Indeed you did, do you wish to return to the hospital?'

'That would be nice…' Lancer gave a weak grin.

Picking up Lancer like a sack of potatoes, Vincent leapt up the story; startling a red-headed woman wearing a business suit with a tie, before dashing back to the hospital through the hole.

'Here you go.' Vincent said as he tossed Lancer on another bed. And with that, Vincent left.

As soon as Vincent left, a doctor completely covered except for his dark brown eyes, came in. Holding a notepad in his hand held so close up to his face he couldn't have been reading it.

'Well Lancer, you should be stable enough to le…' He moved the notepad away and froze, before dashing out screaming for assistance.

Lancer grinned weakly. Sure he was injured, but he hadn't finished talking to that pretty nurse anyway…

* * *

_**Hope you enjoyed it. Be critical, but constructive. I really do want to learn!**_

_**Even with the large time we had, i still didn't fit in everything, and make the fight quite as intense (i was also considering two alternative endings, but that got scrapped and was going to be put in Deadpool's, but got scrapped AGAIN, and may be used later). Aahh well, it was even worse with Deadpool's.**_

_**I hope you enjoyed it anyway.**_

_**As for Lancer's reaction to the blade, it was an experiment, as well as a thing i've always wondered 'if a ghost became corporal in a body part, what would happen?' I tried being creative. Perhaps not smart if i want to win, but i just enjoy experimenting...**_


	5. After the Loss

_**In case the title didn't tell you,Lancer lost the last round. While Lancer simply cannot win anymore, I felt like adding an in-between chapter for him anyway.It isn't too good. I'm struggling to bring in the actual fights as it is. Which isn't to say I don't enjoy it :).**_

_**Anyway, hope you enjoy this little chapter, and if you're in the "A Winner is You" tournament, good luck!**_

* * *

Lancer groaned. He seemed to be making a habit of losing in this tournament. Even now as he walked past a movie theatre and EB Games, he couldn't help but contemplate his losses.

Although he swore it wasn't his fault. Look at all the unlucky things that happened. The kid's dog _happened _to be able to teleport. The priest _happened_ to have a magic sword as well as his massive gun. Not to mention in the two-on-two matches the man he fought just _happened_ to avoid every unavoidable strike he used. Bloody E-ranked luck, and people said it was the worst statistic!

But it wasn't just that. He felt himself getting steadily weaker, the losses were taking there toll on him even with medical assistance. It was like, and he didn't like to admit it.

He was _dying_.

He couldn't think of much else. His energy had been depleting faster, his weapon's ability had grown weaker (hell, it should have taken him far longer to get up when he was hit by his own weapon!), and really he was just a total mess. He had thought being independent of the Grail meant he could survive on his own.

'_Guess I was wrong'_ he thought bitterly, slamming his fist into the wall next to an expensive china shop. _'Wonder if I should keep going or leave to find a possible cure.'_ He dismissed the thought. _'Better to burn out bright, I suppose.'_

In his thoughtful state, he didn't notice someone else walking in the opposite direction, and the person with a bump fell to the ground in front of a "Shocking Bargain Bill Outlet".

Snapping out of his thoughts, he looked down seeing a rather familiar face.

'…Is that you Bazett? Or am I dead and seeing an angel in a business outfit?'

The figure got up quickly and slapped him in the face. 'That's for being morbid and hitting on me in the same sentence!'

Lancer was barely fazed by the slap, but winced all the same. 'I suppose I'm not dead and you're not an angel then?'

Another slap, and the figure (Bazett) huffed, her red eyes glared intently.

'So, you hear to watch me lose again?'

slap

'You know, being slapped by you isn't helping my self esteem…'

Bazett froze, her eyes losing there annoyance and becoming concerned. 'Sorry, it's just. You losing all the time makes me look bad.' She frowned at Lancer, yet her eyes told a different story… Inwardly, Lancer grinned.

'If it helps, in an alternate timeline you lost your arm and I belonged to Kotomine. You can call him a bad master instead.'

She stared at him; confused, Bazett's red hair frozen with her face.

'…I've been spending too much time with a certain other competitor, sorry lass. So, why are you here?'

'To help you of course.'

'How did you know that we're now allowed to have partners?'

'You are!' She looked excited; she jumped up and down like an excited schoolchild. 'I just realized you were low on Mana and came to help you out.'

Lancer groaned. _'Mana, of course! No wonder, I'm still a spirit even if I'm independent of the grail. I still need mana…'_

'Of course, you will have to redo the ritual to allow me to be your master again.' She continued.

'Can't you just give me some magical circuits, lass? I only need a couple.'

Bazett blushed, one hand covering her face, the other preparing to unleash another bone-shattering slap.

Somehow, she controlled herself and the hand came down.

'I… I think I can supply you with enough if you are my servant.' She stuttered.

'If you say so… Master.' Lancer grinned cockily, holding his spear behind his back in a stocks position.

'So, I can assist you in your next round? That's great. My noble phantasm has five charges and…'

'Lass, your noble phantasm KILLS people, we aren't allowed to kill people here.'

'Considering how inhuman the competition is, they may be able to survive.' Drawing the dagger, she flipped in around experimentally.'

'If you want to risk it… Your reputation on the line, not mine.'

'Stop making sense Lancer, it's scary.' She retorted, sheathing the dagger. 'I noticed you haven't been using your runes.'

'I didn't think I would need to…'

'THERE'S the Lancer I know.' She blinked, and then hastily added 'Always underestimating the opposition. You need to use your runes. Heck, maybe the Wesen Gae Bolk.

'You honestly think I should use an attack that it's almost impossible NOT to kill someone with?' Lancer raised an eyebrow. 'I thought I was the bloodthirsty one.'

'Oh, I can be what I want.' Bazett shot back. 'Perhaps you forget I'M the master?'

'Well; with you reminding me every three minutes or so, no.' Lancer countered.

'ooohh… just WIN for once. I'll help you when I have to!' She huffed, stomping away.

Lancer considered doing a sharp retort, but shrugged and figured he should probably get ready for the next fight. If he recalled, it was some kind of koala. Didn't sound too difficult, but then again neither did a guy and his dog. So sighing, Lancer considered where to go in order to give him an advantage…

* * *

_**Well, that's about it. Really just wanted to add a couple of things, and I only recently found somewhere which told me a few of Lancer's runes. So i may actually use some for the next fight. Well, hope you enjoyed this little in-between chapter.**_


	6. Magic vs Science, Lancer vs Leroy

_**I've watched some episodes of Lilo and Stitch. Problem is I never watched Leroy and Stitch, so the closest thing I could think of him being like is Stitch before he turned good... Hope it's ok.**_

_**On a side note, it's the semifinals I think, meaning Lancer has this and one more chance to win a round... Wish me luck!**_

* * *

'Where is that Meega nala quista opponent…' Leroy mumbled to himself. From the computer screen he had seen his opponent as a human with armour and a long spear. To be blunt, it probably wouldn't be much of a challenge. Seriously, not only had the guy lost every round, but a spear when he could survive plasma blasts? Too easy, his opposition would even be able to hurt him.

Of course, he would have to find him first before his frustration made him want to turn this entire mall into a smoking crater. He patted one of the plasma guns he was holding, almost affectionately.

He had been to the hospital, the medieval weapons expo, and everywhere he thought Lancer would be, but there was no sign of him.

Leroy sighed. Suddenly his ears pricked as he heard something. It sounded like armour clinking.

It could have been someone or something else he supposed, but it was better then nothing.

Leroy moved cautiously towards the source, he wasn't going to fall for any traps.

Then he saw it, his opponent was _sleeping _in an arts and crafts store, paint was sprayed everywhere for no apparent reason.

Very strange, his supercomputer brain thought of things it could have been, but they would have needed lots of money and tech, things he doubted a man wielding a spear would have. That left magic; and Leroy didn't know much about magic, except that anything could be possible.

Still, his opponent was asleep, so he had best attack. Trap or no trap, he would beat this guy.

Grinning, Leroy sneaked into the art and craft store, feeling the somewhat slippery paint made him all the more cautious. Then he lunged.

The first thing he noticed was his opponent opening his eyes, the next thing he knew was the figure vanishing, finally he noticed pain as a small trail of blood dribbled slowly out of a small wound on his torso.

Leroy turned around and snarled at the grinning figure, his opponent laughed in response.

'Problem ya wee red creature?' He laughed, 'You're so small my ability confused you for a projectile.'

'_That, and my rune of sight.'_ Lancer gave a mad grin. If Leroy wasn't so busy keeping an eye on Lancer for any sudden movements, he may have noticed a weakly glowing yellow-paint symbol on the floor outside the art store, although the rune soon faded, until no sign of it remained.

'_Well, this creature is fast, but I far exceed it there. I wonder how strong it is…'_

As if reading Lancer's mind, Leroy put all fours to the ground as if ready to leap, then in a surprising move ripped a large section of concrete and lifted it up, followed by hurling it in Lancer's direction.

The "Protection from Arrows" wasn't activated from such a large object, and Lancer hadn't anticipated it. Those two factors made even the agile Lancer get smashed by the boulder.

'_That answers my question…'_ Lancer muttered as the slab of concrete started to remember gravity.

Leroy watched the slab begin to fall, and then it…

Remained suspended?

A quick squint revealed that Lancer must have somehow managed to keep the slab of concrete up with that spear of his. Whatever it was made of, it was as ordinary as the man who wielded it. Not at all…

Lancer dashed under the slab of concrete, taking his spear out at the last minute before dashing out. Leroy smashed a hole in the ground and Lancer stepped on Leroy by accident (as he was of course trying to IMPALE Leroy). As soon as he felt the foot Leroy jumped and grabbed hold of Lancer's leg.

Now he had a chance to tear him to shreds. Grinning, Leroy extracted his claws…

Only to fall back stunned as his muscles seemingly for no reason simply went loose, and his vision became blinded by a flash of light.

If Leroy had been able to see, he would have noticed Lancer's spear had tapped a clean surface, but suddenly a strange orange rune flared up, probably the cause of what just happened.

Lancer took the opportunity to fall back, ignoring the opening.

Leroy's overly large brain quickly came up with a reason why. _'He must have already figured out my skin is too tough for little more then a scratch, and with a weapon like a spear the best tactic is to keep his distance. Problem is, he's right. And since he's faster, I need to figure out a strategy…'_

Leroy jumped just in time as Lancer thrust the spear forward, Leroy attempted to grab hold of the spear but Lancer backed off too fast.

Lancer put both hands on his spear and held it diagonally.

They were in a stalemate. Leroy couldn't strike Lancer fast enough and would miss, and get a token wound. Lancer couldn't hit hard enough to cause the creature any more than a mere scratch.

So the question was, what could either of them do?

Lancer made the first move; his spear began glowing with a red aura.

'Gae Bolk!' Lancer thrust the spear forward, Leroy Ducked and tried to grab…

Suddenly the spear _bent_. And Leroy found himself with a small but deep wound right under the lung.

'_That… doesn't seem possibly.'_ Leroy stared at his wound with distaste even as he crashed into the ceiling of the store, _'If I didn't know and better I'd say Jumba purposely made me weak when it comes to piercing weapons…'_

Lancer kept his gaze at the ceiling, but Leroy had extracted his claws and was latched on the ceiling.

'GAE BOLK!'

Lancer hurled a glowing spear at Leroy, missing by a few centimetres. Much to Leroy's dismay though, it exploded.

A massive hole was now in the top right corner of the shop, leading to the roof. As for Leroy, there was no sign.

Lancer grimaced. _'I sure hope I didn't kill the wee li'l thing…'_

At that point Lancer cried out in pain as his armour was pierced and claws dug into his back. If Lancer was able to see behind him, he would have seen Leroy had been unaffected by the explosion.

Lancer gripped the spear in two hands and started banging Leroy with it like a club. But Leroy was mad, largely unhurt by blunt instruments, and you couldn't put that much force on a strike with arms in an awkward position like that.

So all Leroy did was start slashing Lancer's back, grinning with eyes similar to when Lancer's was in a frenzy, then Leroy realized where he could do more damage and went for the throat…

…Only to feel the same flash of light and sudden loosening of his muscles as before.

Leroy fell to the ground, Lancer turned around with a maniacal grin and lifted his spear ready to impale Leroy…

But perhaps Leroy was prepared, or had developed some sort of resistance to the magic after the first time, for he snapped out of it quicker then last time and rolled out of the way, only to be hit as Lancer struck like a golfer. He hurtled out of the art and craft store and into "Patrick's Pool Emporium". Leroy landed on all four and growled.

Lancer leapt into the store, and sidestepped a 45 degree charge from Leroy. Thrusting the spear at Leroy, he succeeded in merely puncturing one of the pools, causing water to start hissing out and making the floor wet.

Leroy considered extracting his extra arms, but figured it would be more of a hindrance then a help in terms of speed, and the extra places to release energy wouldn't be that helpful, and extra claws weren't too much of a help except on opponents roughly his size. Instead he went for something simple and lifted an entire pool, followed by hurling it at Lancer.

Lancer decided to do an Olympic style evasion and spear-vaulted over it. Followed by his spear glowing with red energy

'GAE BOLK!'

Leroy knew that spear would follow him, so he grabbed another nearby pool (actually, it was a Spa) and held it in front.

This didn't work either, the spear simply pierced right through it and Leroy got yet another wound, once again missing any vital areas. Lancer was probably doing it on purpose, but Leroy either didn't know or didn't care. All he saw was an opportunity. He dropped the pool and _yanked _the spear out of Lancer's hand. Lancer tried holding on but only succeeded in smashing into the spa.

Now Leroy had the weapon. He did a few martial art swishes, waves and twirls with it tentatively. The weapon didn't seem to be that special…

'Gae Bolk!' He shouted experimentally. Nothing happened, so Leroy shrugged.

Then, like a blur, he got punched in the face.

Leroy blinked. The impact was beyond that of an ordinary human, but it wasn't enough to faze him, and since the punch had been more from above then straight, he hadn't been forced back from the impact either.

Lancer was right next to the spa grinning cockily; you'd think he still had the weapon. It both infuriated Leroy and made him suspicious. _'Wonder why he still seems so confident.'_

Leroy thrust forward with the spear; Lancer ducked and struck Leroy in the face with an uppercut. Leroy was thrown into the air, but came down like a meteor leaving a small crater. Recovering fast, Leroy dashed at Lancer, claws outstretched in one hand, Spear held in the other.

Lancer merely smiled as he vanished, appearing next to Leroy, he gave a sharp kick, sending Leroy hurtling into the wall, although Leroy wasn't fazed in the least.

'_I'll hit him eventually, way quicker then his attacks actually affecting me.' _A wave of dizziness swept over Leroy, looking down in the blood-filled water, he realized the truth. _'He's waiting until I fall unconscious from blood loss! Damn, maybe he does stand a chance.' _

Growling, Leroy redoubled his effort, ignoring the dizziness. Lancer must have realized that Leroy knew his plan, because he stopped his façade of hitting Leroy and focused all his energy on ducking and weaving.

Leroy grimaced, unless he got lucky, nothing was going to happen, the blood loss was already getting to him. He couldn't think of a plan, his supercomputer brain was trying to limit everything to keep him going for as long as possible.

However, he eventually got his luck against an E-ranked luck servant; the spear struck and pierced Lancer. Not even using some energy to chuckle, Leroy shimmied on the spear to Lancer and attempted to claw at his face. He succeeded, Lancer tried punching Leroy but to no avail, Leroy was in a dead man's hold and wasn't going to stop. Soon Lancer's face was a bleeding mess and Leroy went for the neck… Just as Lancer got a grip on his own spear.

'GAE BOLK!'

BOOM

An explosion tore through the store, the bloody water parted and Leroy was sent flying. He fell to the floor. For once the explosion had an effect, his innards had been shocked and he struggled to get up.

Lancer; meanwhile, was using the spear he had somehow kept hold of as a crutch, heading slowly but surely back to the art store…

Both of them were in a bad way, but both were still conscious. It all came down to which could stay standing the longest.

Leroy decided to sit down instead of stand up, he knew he didn't have enough energy to find any medical equipment before he passed out, he may as well wait and try to win by conserving his energy until Lancer passed out. Lancer, determined, was still heading towards the art store, although he was already staggering, moving slowly, like a weary traveller.

But Lancer made it. Looking as if he was about to pass out, he tapped the wall with his spear.

A navy symbol appeared and blue light engulfed Lancer. When it cleared, his wounds had partially healed. He still didn't look too good, but he could stand a whole lot easier.

Leroy rolled his eyes. 'Cheater,' he muttered before passing out.

Lancer looked at his unconscious opponent and grinned half-heartedly. But even that faded when he heard sarcastic applause from nearby. Looking to his left, he saw Bazett shaking her head.

'You nearly lost to a mutated koala.' She scolded. 'I thought you said you were going to improve?'

'I won didn't I?' Lancer said warily, he really didn't have the energy to argue, or have his impassive attitude.

'I suppose, but it took the rune of healing; the rune of sight; and the rune of trapping. Anyone could have seen you using them and anticipate them, you only have two main runes no-one has seen yet.

'NOW who is revealing things to the enemy?'

Bazett stiffened, the universal sign she made a mistake. 'I expect better from you Lancer.' She said coldly before walking away.

Lancer watched her walk away with a weak grin. 'I think she's saying she loves me in her own special way…' he mumbled. Sighing, he began what felt like an eternal journey to the hospital he was getting so well acquainted with…

* * *

_**Who expected that kinda ending hey!**_

_**cricket chirps**_

_**It wasn't THAT antclimactic was it? I thought it was quite interesting in the end. Speed vs. Power, Magic vs. Science.  
**_

_**Oh; and as for the runes,****If you read Lancer's profile he has a B ranked Rune Master. Problem is it only tells you one combination, the Rune of Death Match. And since killing the opponent is illegal... You get the idea. It took me a while, but i found some of the runes he uses. The ones he used so far are "Inner Light: Rune of Sight", "Stun: Rune of Trapping", and "Endurance: Rune of Healing". Perhaps where i found them was a fake. If they are, i'll just say I made em up. I mean come on, I can try right?**_

_**Anyway, hope you enjoyed it.**_


	7. Master and Servant, Lancer vs Neji

_**This match was a bit odd to write, at first I had an idea on how to do this fight, but lost it before this round. Pity, but I tried a different tactic. Not to mention what could have been my 'two vs. two' fight. Anyway, hope you enjoy.**_

**

* * *

  
**

Neji sighed; frustration and fear shimmered in the air around him. He had just learned two things. The first was that killing was now allowed. He didn't like killing, but wouldn't let that cloud his logic. The other was that his opponent was a man named Lancer. Not the most original name, and the guy had only won once. Trouble was, his victory was over a supposedly 'invincible' creature, and from what he had heard there had been no using the creature's weakness of water. Although this "Lancer" guy may have been dishonest…

Neji grimaced; he had received a note from Lancer – a challenge – passed on by some woman. He had no idea whether or not to trust Lancer to not get assistance or set a trap, so he had done something he couldn't believe he had done, something that stretched his honour to the very limit.

…He had gotten HELP!

'Don't worry Neji, our youthfulness will be more then a match for you're rather poorly aging opponent!' His green one-piece wearing ally declared, waving his arms in the air and declaring what he said to the heavens. Many people passing by looked at him quizzically. His ally was none other then Rock Lee, the only one who was able to come on such short notice. Neji was surprised Naruto hadn't also come bouncing in. But considering Kyuubi was here, Naruto was probably busy one way or another…

As for what Rock Lee had said, Neji thought his opponent looked pretty good for whatever age he was; he didn't look too old anyway. Although when he had asked Kabuto, he had said Lancer was thousands of years old. Neji shrugged it off thinking that Kabuto was an enemy, even if he had helped some of the 'good guys' occasionally. Considering all the other odd people here, perhaps some thousand years old wasn't that far-fetched after all. Either way Rock Lee was wrong, but to what degree Neji would probably check on later.

He was nearly at the place the note had told him about. Not that it described what the room was. All it had said was when to turn and in which direction. Another thing that Neji disliked, letting his opposition choose where to begin. But unfortunately Lancer had not given anything to answer him back with, and Neji doubted the chocolate demon would be happy for a fight with nothing going on. And since killing was allowed, the demon may just decide to join in the 'fun' if anyone spoiled his entertainment.

All this circulated in Neji's head in several seconds. Sighing, he continued to the area, he just needed to take a left turn and enter the room at the end.

Naturally Rock Lee had already turned the corner and gone full speed ahead. Neji wasn't too concerned. If it turned out to be a trap they probably hadn't anticipated Rock Lee.

Neji just made the turn and saw at the end of the corridor Rock Lee was opening the door. Not even thinking, he leapt inside… and fell.

Neji kept walking, he didn't hear any screams or muffled noises, so it was probably safe. He walked closer, and when he got to the door he looked at the area.

It wasn't a hole; it was a slanted walkway with empty spectator seats leading to a wrestling ring. And within the ring, lying down was Lancer. He waved at Neji lazily. 'So good you could join us!' Neji noticed with disgust that his voice seemed slurred; a cup of sake was in his hand, along with a bottle of the stuff next to him.

And Rock Lee was talking to the woman who had given him the way here. Her red eyes flashed, seeming amused by the green-wearing figure how unsafe it was for someone like her to be where a fight was about to happen.

Wait… What was she doing here? Maybe this whole thing was a trap after all.

'Looks like you brought a pal too.' Lancer got up unsteadily, using the spear to support him. 'I suppose you get to join in the fight Bazett, guess you were clever in not getting some sake after all. A real shame though.'

'Bah, just don't faint on me!' Bazett leapt into the ring next to Lancer and drew a dagger. 'Would you activate the rune already!?'

Lifting the spear, Lancer struck the center of the arena, a brilliant red flash lit the arena and everyone winced.

'There we go.' Lancer said, his voice still going slow and speeding up, barely able to stand up so he quickly placed his lance back to support himself. 'The Ath nGabla rune, otherwise known as the rune of Deathmatch. Try to escape, you'll find yourself unable.'

Neji narrowed his eyes. A Deathmatch, he was obviously using the new rule to the fullest.

Well, better get prepared for the fight.

Neji leapt to Rock Lee's side and got in a ready stance. 'BYAKUGAN!' He shouted, veins going to his eyes. He looked at his opponents, and if it were possible with the Byakugan activated, he would have blinked dumbfounded.

The woman whom Lancer called Bazett seemed normal enough, aside oddly having some chakra in her bloodstream. But Lancer seemed like a construct made out of a very odd-looking sort of chakra. Similar to the shadow clones Naruto used, except far more sophisticated (and a dash of what could have been blood). Also there seemed to be a living force controlling it… and from within, so it probably wasn't some sort of puppet the real Lancer was using, most likely the real deal.

'You done staring at us lad, come on!' Lancer waved one arm in the air drunkenly, keeping the other arm firmly on the spear.

'Lee, take on Bazett, Lancer is my fight.' Neji murmured.

'It doesn't seem right to fight a woman, but I will do ask you ask Neji!' Rock Lee declared. He leapt into the ring and beckoned to Bazett. 'I will allow you to have the first strike!'

Bazett laughed. 'How very chivalrous of you.' With that she slowly moved towards Rock Lee, dagger at ready.

Meanwhile, Lancer hiccupped. 'We gonna fight like REAL men Neji?' He poured another cup and held it to him invitingly.

'I'd rather we settled this correctly…' Neji dashed at him, he struck.

It was then he noticed his big mistake, Lancer's eyes twinkled, and he promptly jumped to the left, all signs of being drunk gone. Lancer slashed with his spear. Caught off-guard, Neji tried to get it away with his hands, but only succeeded in getting a cut along his left palm.

'_This guy's fast, and more to the point, not drunk.'_ Neji thought furiously to himself.

'_The kid ain't as fast as me, but his movements are very fluid and agile. I got a tough pansy-boy to fight it seems.'_ Lancer grinned from the other side of the ring. Swinging his spear around, he sped forward, but this time kept his distance as he slashed at a 45 degree angle to the left. Neji calculated the trajectory and narrowly dodged it by slapping the spear aside, then he was forced to shift back as Lancer did a swift rabbit punch, then he twisted to the right as lancer did a vertical kick at him, At that point Neji thrust his palm forward, trying to strike his opponent in the chest for a quick killing blow.

*Bang*

Unfortunately, this was prevented by Neji being unable to avoid or block the shaft of the spear that came at him from the side. He could see it, but a fatal moment of hesitation prevented him from avoiding it, he slid to the side, a line on the side of his stomach that had some nasty bruising. Not that anyone could see it.

Neji had little time to recover before Lancer was on him again. This time Lancer had the tip of the spear trying to get him. While he could now move back, getting hit was now all the more dangerous. With his immense speed Lancer made the spear look like a whip, and all Neji could do was move back, and wait for the inevitable feel that he was at the edge of the ring. In an act of both genius and desperation, Neji narrowly avoiding another stabbing strike of Lancer's, then span, expelling chakra creating a hemispherical barrier.

The bad news for Neji was that he wasn't close enough to give a good smack on  
Lancer with the barrier, the good news was it rammed into his spear, causing Lancer to spin around, at that moment Neji stopped spinning and thrust his palm into Lancer's chest. A burst of blue energy blasted into the armour, and if Rock Lee was looking, he would have noticed that you could _see through_ a roughly circular section of Lancer's armour and chest, Neji couldn't though with his Byakugan, all he saw was chakra being blocked from that section, with some remaining residue. The armour seemed more like an extension of the guy's skin then actual armour too…

Neji was mildly surprised when Lancer snapped back, clearly not dead. The next thing Neji knew was a rapid strike to the head with enough force to knock him back several inches to the floor, and some rather nasty bruising on his face.

Neji was dazed, but managed to grab the spear when Lancer thrust it millimetres away from Neji's chest. They struggled, But Lancer was clearly winning, and millimetre-by-millimetre the spear came closer.

Rock Lee noticed, leaping back to dodge a slash by Bazett, he took the weights off his legs and _hurled _them at Lancer.

Lancer looked up, the spear flipped up in a defensive stance, hurtling Neji at the ceiling. The weights hit… And Lancer found himself smashed into the wall with enough impact to cause a concussion to a hippopotamus. As it was, Lancer brushed it off with a crazy expression.

'You were holding back? Then I think I might take you ON!'

'I'm not holding back now, gates one through five!' A glowing green aura surrounded Rock Lee, and his skin took a dark red colour.

With that, they clashed.

As they struck, shock waves reverberated around the arena. Seats were ripped out of their pedestals and Bazett and Neji decided to leave them be, while they fought each other in the centre of the ring.

Neji lashed out with one palm to the head, Bazett squirmed out of the way before uppercutting with the dagger. Neji slapped the dagger aside and moved for another strike…

Only to get a kick in the shin, his palm a mere centimetre from bazett's head. He grimaced and backed off a bit. Not that Bazett was making it easy, slash after kick after punch, and all coming from every side. But Neji could see every strike thanks to the Byakugan, not that it wasn't still difficult.

He managed to dodge a three-pronged strike from both hands and a foot, giving him the opening to cut down on an arm…

A sudden burst of energy sent Neji back a meter, his palms slightly burnt. Looking at where he hit, he saw a glowing symbol where he hit.

'I've covered my body with runes.' Bazett explained with a laugh. 'Try to hit me, and you'll find yourself triggering one rune or another.'

'Telling me your tactics isn't the wisest choice.' Neji commented dryly.

'_Still… I need to think of a way to get past that… I wonder if striking the same spot can re-trigger the rune. Only one way to find out…'_

Neji lashed out with both hands, intent on the same spot on Bazett's arm. Bazett was expecting a blow to the head or chest, and as such didn't dodge quite far enough, Neji once again hit the same spot on the left arm joint, and this time nothing happened.

'_Good, I just need to hit repeatedly on the same spot, and be prepared if I make a secondary strike. Although it appears the hand that I singed can't use bursts of chakra for now.'_

Neji dodged to the left from another slash, and blocked the fist with his burnt hand, he lashed out with the right hand, intent on hitting the same spot…

But Bazett had anticipated, Neji was struck by a leg, his arm recoiled and Bazett brought the dagger forward, intent on slicing his neck…

*BAM!*

Lancer and Rock Lee struck very close to the other two, they were both flew out of the arena and into the stand, Bazett opened her right hand and the dagger flew out to impale itself at the top seats.

Rock Lee was panting, opening the five gates was taking his toll on him. He was really just doing what Lancer wanted him to. Hit-and-run wasn't what he should be doing, but this guy could match his speed with what seemed like ease!

Time to change it…

Rock lee unbandage his arms and rocketed forward (except he also STARTED fast), Lancer followed with that smirk of his…

This time just before they were about to clash, Rock Lee tilted to the right, Lancer (who was holding his spear in a lance formation) missed, and found himself a little tied up…

The next thing he knew was that he was caught in a bear hug. His arms were trapped, and his spear was trapped next to him.

Suddenly they were in the air right above the ring, spinning right round (like a record baby) and Lancer realized he was going to have a headfirst experience with the earth.

Despite the intense speed, time almost seemed to stand still. Lancer realized there was little he could do, but for one thing. A long shot, but it was all he had.

As they fell, he shouted 'GAE BOLK!'

The spear glowed with red energy, and from a little struggling, the spear's point was just above Lancer's face.

Then, the lance collided with the earth, and even Rock Lee didn't anticipate the explosion…

The explosion tore the ropes of the arena, and the white became a charred black, as well as a crater covering most of the arena.

It was that explosion that managed to get Neji up, albeit unsteadily. There was grit in his eye that made it difficult to see, but his hand seemed to allow chakra to flow again.

He looked at the crater in the ring, Rock Lee was definitely out for the count, but Lancer had what appeared to be third degree burns, yet still managed to slowly attempt to get up.

Not that he would be a match for a merely dazed Neji.

Neji gave a small smile; here it was, the end.

He strode confidently to the ring, already knowing what to do.

'_The man is basically made of chakra, so a one hundred and twenty eight palm should completely disable him, and perhaps make the construct cease to exist.'_

It made it easier to not see the man in front of him as a person, but rather a construct. Even as he jumped up to the crater, he saw Lancer as nothing more then an obstacle.

Lancer was in range…

He brought his palms forward 'Eight Trigram, One Hundred and…' He thrust forward to strike…

If it wasn't for the concentration and how dazed he was, he may have been able to avoid the dagger that had been hurled at him by Bazett, the word "Fragarach". To him anyway, he didn't know that the strike; like the Gae Bolk, was unavoidable

As it was, it struck him in the chest. Blood flew freely and he faltered, falling to the ground immediately.

Bazett started staggering down. 'A pity that Neji had to die, he looked like a nice, serious boy. He could have won too, if he wasn't stupid enough to use one of his most powerful moves as a finisher.'

Lancer looked up, smiling weakly. 'Well, the green kid might survive. But on your matter of Neji using one of his ultimate skills, you knew he would from the start, didn't you?'

'I guessed, I also guessed his assumption that I was unconscious, not wanting to risk striking a rune that could finish him.' Bazett smirked, obviously pleased.

'Bah, you're lucky you're a lass, that speedy fellow could have taken off those weights immediately.'

'I planned it all; can't you just feel better about that?' Bazett sniffed. 'Well, you may have lost the tournament, but I think two victories are enough to wipe the stench of defeat.'

'Very well lass.' Lancer's eyes narrowed. 'Well, now that the tournament is over, there is a certain man in golden armour I wish to speak too…'

* * *

_**I suppose i should explain some things on this to be sure. The 'odd chakra' was what they call 'mana' (or 'prana') from Fate/Stay Night. Bazett having chakra in her bloodstream was a reference to her abilities being passed down genetically more then training. Lancer being made of chakra is because he pretty much is a being made from the holy grail and of 'energy' from it. And as for Fragarach, it is a technique that can stop anyone's most powerful (or one of) technique and kills the user.  
**_


	8. Chaos Round Intro: A Dark Turn

_**Please Note this is an Alternative Ending, if you want to know what REALLY Happened, go check out avatarjk137's. As well as Alius's final entry. This one in fact uses **_

_**Angel-Lucifel's ending.**_

_**The Chaos Round for me (which strangely, is suppose to sum up the strange things going on, 'chaos' indeed!) will be split into three parts, this being part one.**_

_**Well, hope you enjoy!  
**_

* * *

'Looks like I found you.'

Gilgamesh smirked and took another sip of his herbal tea, a drink that normally was supposed to be calming. Yet it did nothing to the corruption and madness that _emanated_ from the man. 'I guess you have, Lancer. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?' He asked casually.

Gilgamesh's smirk was met with an icy glare. 'I think I found something of yours, a rather peculiar holy sword, it happens to be in the hands of one of my opposition.'

'Aren't you interested in equal challenges? I figured you would consider it fitting… A half-breed to a half-breed I say.'

Lancer winced at that statement, but countered 'certainly, if I wasn't certain of… malicious intent. You tried to kill me again. Now it's time I returned the favour.'

'You really think a hound could kill a king?' Gilgamesh asked, bemused. He took another sip of his tea, more slowly this time, savouring the flavour. 'I've killed plenty already, I've developed a bit of a list, you see. While you are certainly on there, I was content to wait until later.'

'This time I'm not trying to protect someone, and you no longer have the element of surprise. Also, since I died by Caladbolg' the memory flashed, unwanted, into Lancer's head. 'That particular debt is repaid.'

'Well, I suppose I was going to try and find you shortly, It's nice that you made it easier. Almost a pity though.' Gilgamesh sighed, waving his left hand. No sooner did he do that then glowing red chains materialized from his fingertips. Like snakes they lashed out and coiled around Lancer before he had time to utter a retort.

Or avoid them, of course…

'Probably should have seen that coming.' Lancer muttered, struggling against the seemingly _sentient _chains to no avail.

'You could say I'm glad my divinity went down a rank, it only seems to cause trouble.' Gilgamesh said conversationally as ripples in the air appeared behind him, followed by swords slowly drifting out of them, all the blades were different and you could vaguely recognize some of them if you watched the History Channel. 'Now, I believe I was about to kill you and stop my monologue…'

All of the blades went as if they were shot out of a cannon. With a golden glow they tore everything in their path (Except Gilgamesh, who seemed to be able to direct them away from himself). The wooden tables and chair became nothing more then a mass of sawdust and splinters, large gashes appeared in the tiled floor. The teacup (an expensive looking-one, if you had a good look) ceased to exist.

And Lancer…

One of those blades struck him in the left arm, and then he had vanished, the chains vanished soon after, having done their job.

Gilgamesh frowned. Certainly he could survive one strike; heck, it shouldn't have even pierced that armour. What just happened...?

The answer came as the blades ceased firing and Lancer leapt off the balcony, Gilgamesh saw that on him, on a dent in his armour, was a rune burning brightly, The Rune of Retreat.

In mid-air Lancer pointed his spear at Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh managed to tear a sword out of the rippling air behind him and bring it to defend.

The weapons clashed, Gilgamesh stumbled back from the force of the blow that sent sawdust spiralling into the air, then coming down like a distorted image of snow. The weapon he was using mustn't have been a good one to use (although it was golden and encrusted with jewels), as you could see the blade had promptly snapped horizontally around the centre. Disgusted, Gilgamesh reached out and tore another blade from a ripple, followed by a horizontal slash.

Lancer took a small leap back to avoid it 'So, aren't you scared of the demon coming to wipe you out for disobeying him?' He sneered. The words were followed by a stab at Gilgamesh's heart with the spear. Gilgamesh deflected it. Lancer came closer and let go of the spear with one hand, revealing he had also been holding a dagger as well. Using it, this time he managed to pierce Gilgamesh's armour.

Blood flowed out, and letting out a mangled cry Gilgamesh attempted a decapitation strike, meanwhile furrowing his eyebrows. _'Where have I seen that dagger…' _He thought. This was quickly mentally shrugged of, it was probably one of the weapons in his extensive inventory.

Gilgamesh attempted a top left to bottom right diagonal slash.

Tearing out the dagger (causing Gilgamesh to momentarily pause from the pain) Lancer flung the spear with one arm to block the slash, and then got his dagger hand to support it.

At that moment, the gate let out a barrage, it wasn't as destructive or as powerful as the last, perhaps Gilgamesh had used up most of his mana on the last strike. Several of them struck Lancer, who found himself launched back several meters, large dents in his armour that might have fractured some bones.

'Death by Chocolate has his own problems right now, not to mention I am getting a bit impatient and reckless, like you.' His eyes glinted with distaste. 'Not the most royal way to act, but I have ways to get power that even demons will come to fear and I need to act fast.'

Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Lancer's eyes glinted with madness. And something else stirred in those eyes…

Gilgamesh matched it, even the strange feeling that there was something else in there.

'GAE…' Lancer dashed forward, his lance glowing red.

'BOLK!'

Gilgamesh knew he couldn't avoid the strike, but he thrust his blade forward.

The next moment, both of them were impaled. Lancer's weapon had gone through the chest and out the other end, Gilgamesh's through the arm holding the spear.

Lancer's arm struggled to hold tight to the spear. But the loss of blood and the fact that the blade had pierced the bone caused his hand to weaken its grip.

Ignoring the blood pouring from the wound all too close to his heart, Gilgamesh tore the spear out and hurled it to the back of the store.

'Enough!' He shouted.

Once again, snakelike chains materialized and entrapped Lancer.

'Well, you've done a good job. I'd be all for a long speech, but all the blood flowing out of me makes it difficult to think.

Lancer had however, in the last moments before the chains lashed out, gotten out of the Gate of Babylon's way by just managing to exit the store. Gilgamesh noticed this and smirked.

'You should be honoured; he murmured, moving back to the ripples in the air. 'The last time I used Enuma Elish to kill someone…' He paused, picking a spiral blade with strange markings. He turned to Lancer, the blade had started spinning and a red aura surrounded it. 'This will certainly be loud and… distracting.' He murmured. Clearing his throat, he said loudly 'Others will die, but if I want to become something that demons themselves will cower from, sacrifices must be made. This world needs a true king.' He brought the sword back. 'ENUMA… ELISH!'

He brought the sword forward. A red beam burst out of the sword.

Lancer watched as the beam came closer, smiling. A smile that must had come from Gilgamesh, for he had lost his.

'FRAGARACH!' He shouted.

The dagger tore through the chains and went on a collision course with the massive beam. On contact, the beam was _absorbed_ into the dagger, giving it a reddish glow as it kept on travelling.

Gilgamesh could only watch in horror as the dagger kept going, the beam sucked into the blade as if it were a black hole.

The cursed blade shattered in his hand, and the dagger impaled him in the chest. Black gunk (strangely, not blood…) spurt out of him.

Strangely, he reacted with a smile, a sad smile, but not a fake or evil one that had seemingly always been on his face.

Then, he imploded in a burst of red energy that sucked in all the sawdust and splinters, which vanished from sight as soon as the implosion did.

Lancer stood there silently, blood still dripping from his wound.

Then he heard clapping echoing through the area, a single person.

Lancer looked around wildly, finally noticing Kirei Kotomine in a similar position he had been minutes ago on the upper floor, right next to a piano store that looked like it had been ransacked multiple times. He stared down at Lancer, bemused.

Lancer sighed. 'I hope you have a good reason for coming here Kotomine; because I feel like killing you where you stand, and have precious little stopping me.'

'I'm disappointed that you would speak that way to your old master.' Kotomine straightened his dull navy robe, as if brushing off the insult. 'What I did to you was cruel, but that's all human nature is anyway, I was no worse then the other masters at the time.'

Images of all the masters he had known flashed in Lancer's mind. Shirou, Bazett…

'You're wrong there.' He murmured, moving to reclaim his spear.

'In any case, it is immaterial.' Kotomine shrugged. 'Unless you know how to purify the grail or have access to magic forgotten, I'm afraid changing the past is beyond our reach. What matters is now, and alas, I need to save you.'

'SAVE me?' Lancer leapt up to stand right in front of Kirei (who took a couple of steps back to prevent himself from being knocked over), face-to-face.

'And I need help from the likes of you?'

'More then you know.' Kirei gave a thin, bitter smirk. 'It will be here soon enough, and it's scouts have already arrived.

'It? Scouts?' Lancer narrowed his eyes. 'You better start making some sense now.'

'Very well, let me start from the beginning.' Kotomine turned away from Lancer to gaze at the ceiling. 'The Grail is still alive.'

There was a moment of silence.

'It was alive to begin with?' Lancer asked, raising an eyebrow.

'Alive with the worst of human emotions, not a single beacon of light to spread its way through the darkness. Pure Malevolence… To most humans anyway. And yes, it can think, so it is "alive" in a manner of speaking.'

'So then, what does it have to do with me?'

'Your very existence.' Kirei shook his head. 'Didn't you wonder why you live now?'

'I tend not to look a gift horse in the mouth.' Was Lancer's curt reply.

'I suppose that's how you ended up with me.' Lancer's spear arm twitched. 'But in the end that final moment defined this happening. That final sacrifice made you a beacon in the Grail, a beacon to weaken the darkness.' He chuckled. 'Normally it would have easily eradicated you. But due to situations that arose, such as being weakened by a hero it had to expel previously, it escaped. Badly weakened, and the beacons within it causing it agony. It chose to expel them… You being one of them.'

'And Gilgamesh was one such hero? He didn't seem that good to me.'

'He took advantage of the Grail's weakness to escape on his own, tearing himself from the grail and attempting to escape it. From there he had to think of plans on the run, it's no wonder he did poorly.'

'He had plans?' Now Lancer was curious, if disbelieving.

'Well, when Gilgamesh left he took something of the Grail's essence with it, a fragment of its power if you will. But far more then that as it turns out. You could almost call it the Grail's "Flesh", as it was leaking its power even as it gained it. However that piece called to it, so Gilgamesh had to find a way to mask the malevolence.' Kirei smirked. 'What better way to do that then to find a demon and stay near them.'

'Death by Chocolate?' Lancer grinned. Whether it was true or not, he was getting into this story.

'Not the most powerful demon, but he did the trick.' Kirei had now started pacing around Lancer. Lancer kept a firm hand on his spear, ready for a lunge. 'Gilgamesh's ideals were almost noble, seeing as if he was alive, the Grail would remain weakened. Of course, it was more likely just to save his neck. But the fraction of the grail sought to seek dominance. While it didn't manage to take him over completely, it made him do things decidedly dangerous. Such as to find a way to ascend to a higher plain of existence.'

'Is that possible for a spirit?'

'Yes.' Kirei smirked. 'Naturally he went for the easier path, a way to become a demon. To become Angelic is much more strenuous. All for the reasons to stop the Grail.' He smirked, the obvious 'and his own neck' left in the air. 'But a demon all the same.'

'Unfortunately, there was the problem of you entering the tournament. A tournament broadcast worldwide. You see, even it can watch television. And the Grail is also after you.'

'Why would it be after me?'

Kirei laughed at that, momentarily stopping his pacing. 'You really have forgotten, you knew your place was there in the grail to destroy it from the inside. What a bitter struggle. What…' He stopped, an involuntary shudder running through him. '…Agony it caused it to tear you out. But naturally you did the same as Gilgamesh, and took a piece with you. And with your face on the screen, the Grail would come here, and it would also find Gilgamesh.'

'That story seems like utter bull.' Lancer commented casually, bringing his spear up to point at Kirei's face. 'You'll have to come up with something better.'

'It was a spiritual conflict; I merely gave it more physical terms. And if you want evidence, merely look at you now. Ready to kill an unarmed opponent; don't tell me the corruption is getting to you?'

Lancer froze, the spear dropping to the floor.

'I'd keep that in hand if I were you.' Kirei warned. 'I'm afraid that the Grail is here, its scouts anyway. Now is the time to stand and fight Lancer. Not for any wish, but to live!'

'A fight, hey? Now it gets interesting.' Lancer gave a grin, the fact it was all-too-much like Gilgamesh's gave nasty aneurism as you realized the implications. His wounds from the battle had already completely healed, save one last bead of blood that slid lazily down. Unbeknownst to either of them, as he spoke the black gunk slid away quietly. 'Now, where and what are these scouts?'

*********************************************************************

Outside the mall, the tattered remains of what appeared to be bubble gum laid there. As well as numerous chunks of the building, most likely torn off due to one battle or another. Leaping above the pink gunk and the rubble surrounding the mall were seven statues.

Each statue was human shaped and sized. Except one who was about as large as three men standing on one another. They were all made of the same dull grey stone that was strangely flexible, and a close examination would reveal a slight shimmer in the air around them. Also, the "eyes" glowed red as blood.

No words were spoken, yet each knew what they had to do. Entering the mall, they dashed off with supernatural speed. All searching for two men, but would not hesitate to kill others, especially if it benefited them.

Gilgamesh… And Lancer.

* * *

_**Hope you enjoyed it! If you see errors, i'd like to know!**_

_**Well, thanks for reading!**_


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